My Mailbag: On The Music and History of Undercover

Dave Swaney has been coming to Undercover concerts since the early 1980s, he tells me. We were able to spend a little time together at our performance at the House of Blues in 2022 and over pizza he told me he had a lot of questions about the workings, music and history of Undercover over the years. He sent them to me not long after, and dammit Dave, I’m sorry it took me so long, but here you go! 

Thou Shalt Not Lie!

It was literally written in stone if we are to believe the tale. Jesus calls Satan “the father of lies,” and Sam Harris refers to lying as “the sin that paves the way to every other sin.” We are taught from the youngest age that we should not lie and we learned that the punishment can be severe because the consequences of lying are severe. But also true is that from our youngest years, we are put in a double bind. Not only are we taught that we mustn’t lie, but we are also taught that we must lie.

There Is Only Time for Loving

“There isn’t time, so brief is life, for bickerings, apologies, heartburnings, callings to account. There is only time for loving, and but an instant, so to speak, for that.”

Mark Twain

Our Table

I used to enjoy sitting at our table, watching you eat, 
watching you enjoy your food, every bite you took.
You didn't know but I watched as we talked.
Sweet potatoes, salads, stir-fry, spiced by ear,  
your tiny hands, nourishing yourself with food I prepared,
bought with the fruits of my labor.
I watched you enjoy every bite, each an infusion,
my love for you diffusing into you, 
spoons full of love. A portion of my vow,
what spring does with the cherry trees, but more,
It was one way that I just knew. 

I Am Your Father, V – Fathers Day

Any man can have a kid as they say, but it’s another matter altogether to be a father. I had to learn as I went, to cobble together what it meant to father and how to do it.

A Brief Thought on Love and Heartbreak

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Let us forget with generosity, those who cannot love us. – Pablo Neruda

On Turning 65

Leonardo da Vinci, Studies of an Old Man and a Youth, c. 1500-1505

A while ago, on January 2, 2011, I wrote a reflection piece called Reverse Resolutions – 11 Reflections on 2011. I suppose it’s normal to reflect like this on days of passage and that would include a 65^th birthday.  It’s hard to believe that last article was 10 years ago already, but so that goes as we age as well. Don’t worry, I’m not going to burden you, dear reader, with 65 reflections on the occasion, but taking stock of a few things is not a bad idea from time to time.   These are not resolutions or revelations that I woke up one morning realizing after an epiphany – it’s just things I’ve been thinking about lately.

The Sound of Metal and Me

I watched Sound of Metal last night, guessing I might see parts of myself in it. It had a number of interesting angles for me. First, the main character, Riz Ahmed as Ruben Stone, is the drummer in a loud, intense and thrashing band, and then of course the fact that he goes almost deaf literally overnight and then completely deaf when he has cochlear implants surgically inserted. I have profound hearing loss but I’m not deaf and it didn’t happen overnight.

Podcast with Drunk Ex-Pastors

About a year ago I got a message from Christian, who asked if I’d be interested in being interviewed for their podcast, Drunk Ex-Pastors. Well, that name alone…!. We exchanged messages over several months…

“We have a lot of listeners who are struggling as they come out of religion. My co-host is Catholic but we both lost a lot leaving evangelicalism behind.

Episode 103: Ethics, Morality, and America with Ojo Taylor

In April of 2017 I had a long conversation about my journey out of Christianity with Steve Hackman that ended up in two installments of his fantastic podcast series, Beyond the Pale. We recently had a follow-up conversation that went beyond those basics – pretty far beyond.